Wild harvested açaí by riverside populations

Considered by many nutritionists to be a superfood because it is one of the richest sources of antioxidants, açaí can be used in the form of beverages, jellies, sweets and ice cream, among others, and has gained the national and international market. The açaí berry offers an opportunity for economic development that combines the social inclusion of family farmers with the conservation of forest ecosystems.

Brazil’s largest açaí production center is in the Tocantins River region in Pará. A region with hundreds of islands and about 50,000 inhabitants, which basically survive from açai extraction, wild cocoa and fishing. Sustainable activity in the region provides food and income for thousands of riverside families. It is precisely in one of these areas, in the municipality of Abaetetuba, that the company Almazonia has been investing in the work and purchase of the product directly from the communities to establish the so-called “rainforest economy”, turning native families into guardians of the Amazon.